Chapter 539: Grasp and Capture

From Mount Shen, it was very easy to travel to Dazhi City.

However, the area outside Dazhi City could no longer be described merely as desolate; viewed from the air, a vast section of the immense grassland had been completely denuded.

Around Dazhi City, walking was no longer possible, and roads were gone. Everything was covered in thick layers of dust, capable of easily burying a person. A gust of wind immediately turned the air hazy, and if it rained, the consequences were unimaginable, with some areas where water veins had scoured becoming like swamps.

All businesses that had existed outside Dazhi City were also destroyed, including the stable where Wu Jinliang once stayed, which had been razed to the ground with devastating force.

With the water veins destroyed, the city's domestic water supply became problematic. Reports had to be submitted to request experts skilled in water-manipulation techniques to restore the water veins.

Road construction was also underway outside the city; without it, movement would be impossible during rain. Ordinary merchants' goods could barely enter or exit, and without the flow of common people, the livelihoods of the upper classes could not be sustained.

Without the flow of common people, the city itself would lose its reason for existence.

Jiang You'er, disguised, successfully entered the city and headed straight for her destination.

With information leaked from the Blazing Flame Sect, finding Yin Tianlu's location was simple: he was still in the building under surveillance near Bai Clan's Rice Shop.

A carriage stopped outside the small building's courtyard gate. Jiang You'er, cloaked, simply went to the door. Suddenly, the people inside that building vanished. Three Blazing Flame Sect disciples, including Yin Tianlu, disappeared without a trace.

It was only after the Blazing Flame Sect failed to establish contact that they realized something had gone wrong, but their urgent investigation yielded no results.

When the news reached Qiu Ben, there was a resounding crash. He slammed his palm onto the tea table, collapsing it, and the teacups shattered.

Huang Lang, the senior disciple who had just reported the situation, also looked helpless.

Qiu Ben, furious, pointed outside the main door and roared, "What is this sect doing? What is Yin Tianlu? He has absorbed three divine flames; he is the future of our sect! I was so afraid of him suffering any mishap that I forced him to return, and yet the sect sent him out again to get involved in this? It's not like he's indispensable or that things can't proceed without him. The moment trouble arose in Dazhi City, they should have recognized the danger and recalled him. Now, let's see what the sect will do!"

Huang Lang sighed, "Master, please calm your anger. The incident has already occurred; we can only find a way to locate him."

Qiu Ben retorted, "How do we find him? Isn't it chaotic enough already? If we search, it will be us here doing the searching. If we find him, good; if not, whose responsibility it is will depend entirely on what the higher-ups say. Do you think they will admit their decision was a mistake?"

Huang Lang lowered his head and said nothing. It was not appropriate for him to comment much on such a topic.

Despite his anger, the situation still needed to be reported. After much effort to suppress his fury and deep contemplation, Qiu Ben slowly said, "The Bai Clan was involved before, and this time the incident happened while we were monitoring Bai Clan's Rice Shop. Relying on the support of the Phoenix Clan, they truly don't know their place!"

Although he could not confirm the culprit, the Bai Clan was the prime suspect, and he reported the situation as such.

As soon as the news reached the Blazing Flame Sect, Yin Tianlu's disappearance shocked the high-ranking officials, who immediately made a strong decision in the shortest possible time.

Upon receiving the sect's resolution, Qiu Ben immediately headed straight to the Divine Temple on Mount Shen's main peak to meet with the Divine Maiden Feng Qingping. He stated directly that three more Blazing Flame Sect disciples had gone missing in Dazhi City, during their surveillance of Bai Clan's Rice Shop, making the Bai Clan the most suspicious. "This is happening again and again; it's simply lawless! Our Blazing Flame Sect cannot tolerate this any longer. There's nothing else to do but find them, at any cost!"

Feng Qingping's brows furrowed deeply. The last time the Blazing Flame Sect lost several disciples and a precious treasure, it was directly related to the Bai Clan. Now, another disappearance was linked to them, making even her wonder. In fact, she had already received discreet communications from the Phoenix Clan, stating that a cooperation had been established with the Blazing Flame Sect. If the Bai Clan was indeed acting recklessly, relying on their Phoenix Clan background, there would be no need for politeness when it was time to set things straight. However, she had been raised by Granny Qi, which constituted a debt of gratitude, and Granny Qi was now the Bai Clan's matriarch. So, she was still deliberating on how to deal with the Bai Clan regarding this matter, when one crisis had barely passed before another arose.

After much deliberation, or rather, with no room left for it, Qiu Ben was at her doorstep, pressuring her to fulfill the Phoenix Clan's promise.

After a long pause, Feng Qingping asked, "How do you want me to cooperate?"

Qiu Ben said, "I have always believed that the simplest and most direct method is always the most effective."

Feng Qingping asked again, "What kind of simple and direct method?"

Qiu Ben replied, "Arrest them and interrogate them. As long as they fear death, I don't believe anyone can withstand a harsh interrogation."

Feng Qingping said, "Granny Qi is the matriarch of the Bai Clan. Do you think she would yield to your torture?"

Qiu Ben responded, "No matter how capable one person is, they cannot do everything. If she doesn't confess, someone else surely will. I don't believe there isn't a single involved person below her who knows something."

Feng Qingping asked, "What if it is eventually proven that the Bai Clan did not do it?"

Qiu Ben declared, "That is not for the Blazing Flame Sect to consider. Our Blazing Flame Sect has already paid a price first."

After hearing this, Feng Qingping was silent for a moment before proposing a condition: "Do not use torture on Granny Qi."

Qiu Ben, bold and decisive, agreed, "Very well. As long as she does not escape, there will be no need to torture her. Once one person confesses, she will have no choice but to admit it, unless she wishes for her entire clan to be wiped out! To prevent anyone from slipping through and escaping, once personnel are in position at all locations, we will issue the command to act simultaneously and apprehend all relevant individuals!"

It sounded simple, but the deployment would take some time.

Actions would not only take place here on Mount Shen but also simultaneously in Dazhi City.

Feng Jue, the Lord of the Central District who was involved, was shocked, having never expected them to act against Granny Qi. Initially, he objected, but after learning it was the Phoenix Clan's intention, he could only accept it in silence.

Soon after, Po Yuan descended the mountain again, taking a few people with him to Dazhi City.

After a long flight and a secret arrival, he immediately arranged a clandestine meeting with City Lord Li Xianghong, informing her of Mount Shen's decision.

Li Xianghong was also shocked that they would act against her friends. After contacting Mount Shen and confirming the order, she had no choice but to obey and proceed with the secret arrangements.

Once news arrived from all locations that everything was arranged, the Divine Maiden Feng Qingping in the Divine Temple instructed her maid, "Please invite Granny Qi to come; tell her I have something to discuss."

"Yes, madam," the maid replied, taking her leave.

It was not far; leaving the palace, a short flight down the mountain would bring her to the nearest peak. Upon learning that the Divine Maiden had summoned her, Granny Qi didn't think much of it, as it was a normal occurrence. She immediately left her residence and flew to the Divine Temple with the attendant maid.

As she landed outside the temple and saw Feng Jue, who usually greeted her with a smile but now had a somber expression while bowing, she sensed a hint of abnormality. "What's wrong, Young Lord Jue?" she politely asked. "Has someone upset you?"

Feng Jue did not respond, merely stepping aside and gesturing for her to enter.

Seeing his silence, Granny Qi chuckled, asked no further questions, and, leaning on her staff, lifted her skirt and stepped over the threshold.

Upon entering, she noticed a new, unfamiliar face in the hall. She had never met Qiu Ben from the Blazing Flame Sect, but she had her own information channels on the mountain. Seeing Qiu Ben's recently regrown hair, she guessed who he was but pretended not to recognize him. That was not the main issue. What truly made her feel that something was gravely wrong was that the Divine Maiden, standing in the place of honor, did not descend the steps to greet her, which was highly unusual.

Meanwhile, Feng Qingping, who stood in the main position, subtly nodded towards Feng Jue at the entrance. Feng Jue then turned, took out a paired talisman, and one by one, messages for action were sent from his hand.

Immediately, a group of people appeared around the mountain where the Bai Clan resided, forming a perimeter.

In Yaoshan City, Hua Chong, a ruffian, was strolling through the streets. As he walked among a group of people, those passing on either side suddenly turned and apprehended him, pinning him to the ground, pulling a sack over his head, and throwing him into a nearby carriage that quickly drove him away.

Upstairs and downstairs at Zhulang Pavilion, personnel suddenly rushed out. Those upstairs stormed guest rooms to apprehend people, while in the forests downstairs, an angry tiger's roar was heard as it was besieged and forced out.

After the action began, Lou Xiucai, who had been guarding Yin Xu, apologized and left, restoring Yin Xu's freedom. Actually, it was just to ensure Yin Xu's cooperation; they needed her to allow the arresting party upstairs and also to prevent her from leaking information, which was why her freedom had been temporarily restricted.

Yin Xu did not thank him. She quickly went to the window and craned her neck to observe the commotion from the tiger's roar downstairs. She saw a white tiger forced into its true form. The tiger initially wanted to resist but, seeing the captors reveal their city guard identities, did not wish to cause conflict and surrendered.

The events happened suddenly and ended quickly. The Bai Clan members, unaware of the situation, did not want to cause trouble at the foot of Mount Shen, and most cooperated obediently as soon as the city guards revealed their identities.

Yin Xu immediately hurried out to check the situation and ran into Tian Shen, who had come running. Tian Shen quietly reported, "They're arresting guests who were watching Wang Ping, and it seems they are all Bai Clan members."

"Bai Clan members?" Yin Xu was startled, recalling the white tiger she had just seen downstairs. Anyone involved here would know the relationship between the Bai Clan and the Phoenix Clan. This was Mount Shen's sphere of influence; how could the city guards act against the Bai Clan? Unsure of the situation, she immediately returned to her room, took out a paired talisman, and sent the relevant information to Shichun. After all, they were watching Shichun, and she didn't know if this news would be useful to him, but she reported it to him at the first opportunity.

In Dazhi City, a group of people suddenly appeared and stormed into Bai Clan's Rice Shop. Upon seeing the city guards rush in to make arrests, not only the shop assistants but also Bai Qiru was surprised. Although they didn't know why, they all cooperated and were taken away obediently.

Chaoyue Hall was no exception. A group of city guards surrounded it before rushing in, startling the guests who were reading and chatting, causing chaos. Then, all five members of the bookstore owner's family, without exception, were escorted out.

Dongwenshu shouted, "What are you doing? What do you want? I want to see the City Lord! I want to see the City Lord!" A kind city guard sighed, "Sir, please stop shouting. This is the City Lord's order. We're all old acquaintances; if you keep yelling, you'll force us to use harsher methods, and then no one will look good."

The three sisters of the Dong family were clearly startled; despite their good looks, they all wore expressions of panic and helplessness, unaware of what crime their family had committed. Could it be that their cousin's matter hadn't passed yet? Their family was considered honest and upright. Besides the incident with Fan Wuzhe last time, they truly couldn't think of anything else that would implicate them.

Neighbors on the street watching the commotion were also pointing and discussing, wondering if there was some misunderstanding and believing that this family could not have committed any crime...

"What do you want?"

"Who allowed you to trespass?"

On Mount Shen, Wu Jinliang and his three companions, who were under house arrest by the Bai Clan, also heard the unusual commotion outside.

Running out of their underground cultivation chamber, they peered through window and door cracks, discovering a group of Mount Shen's forces had surrounded the place, and the Bai Clan's personnel were clearly in a standoff with them.

As he watched, Wu Jinliang, observing from the window crack, suddenly reached for his paired talisman. It was a message from Shichun, saying that city guards were arresting Bai Clan members at Zhulang Pavilion, and he didn't know the situation, asking them to inquire with Granny Qi here what was happening. Wu Jinliang paused, then glanced out the window crack again, immediately realizing something was wrong. This wasn't city guards arresting Bai Clan members; this was Mount Shen taking action! He immediately cursed under his breath, "What's there to ask?" He turned to look at the other three, "Hey you guys, stop looking! Hurry up and run with me!"

"What's wrong?" Chu Jingting asked, and all three turned to look.

"Who knows? Just run first!" Wu Jinliang, having thrown out the words, ran around like a headless chicken, unsure where to go. Finally, he waved his hand, beckoning everyone to follow him back to the cultivation chamber, and immediately began prying up floor tiles.